{"id":114550,"date":"2025-10-27T10:15:00","date_gmt":"2025-10-27T10:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/?p=114550"},"modified":"2025-10-27T10:17:17","modified_gmt":"2025-10-27T10:17:17","slug":"landlords-face-24-hour-deadline","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/landlords-face-24-hour-deadline\/","title":{"rendered":"Landlords Face 24-Hour Deadline as New Law Hits Millions of Homes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

From today, social landlords in England are legally required to fix dangerous conditions in homes under new rules known as Awaab\u2019s Law<\/em><\/strong>. The law has been introduced to address longstanding concerns about substandard housing in the social rented sector, following the widely publicised death of two-year-old Awaab Ishak<\/em> in 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Named in his memory, this legislation aims to prevent further tragedies by holding landlords accountable for unsafe living conditions<\/strong>. Around four million homes are covered under this law, marking a significant shift in legal responsibilities for councils and housing associations across the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mandatory Response Deadlines for Emergency Hazards and Mould<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The new rules require social landlords to address emergency health and safety hazards, such as exposed wiring or severe leaks, within 24 hours<\/strong> of being reported. Where damp and mould are involved, landlords must inspect the issue within 10 working days<\/strong>, make the home safe within five working days<\/strong>, and inform tenants of their findings in writing within three working days.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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Mould in a wall \u00a9Shutterstock<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

According to the UK Government, landlords are also obliged to take into account vulnerable tenants, including families with young children and individuals with disabilities <\/a>or health conditions. In cases where it is not possible to make a property safe in time, alternative accommodation must be offered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Failure to comply could result in landlords being taken to court, ordered to pay compensation, or lose rent for properties deemed uninhabitable. These legal duties fall under the Social Housing<\/em><\/strong> <\/em>(Regulation) Act 2023<\/em><\/strong><\/a> and are part of broader efforts to raise housing standards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Housing Ombudsman warned earlier this year of a sharp increase in complaints about unsafe homes. According to the Ombudsman\u2019s report, complaints rose from 1,111<\/strong> in 2020 to 6,380<\/strong> in 2025, with issues ranging from mould and leaks to fire and electrical safety risks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00a31 Million Fund to Strengthen Tenant Voice and Accountability<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In parallel with Awaab\u2019s Law, the government has launched a \u00a31 million<\/strong> Social Housing Innovation Fund. The fund aims to help tenants better engage with their landlords and influence decisions affecting their homes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Successful applicants will receive grants of up to \u00a3100,000<\/strong> to support new communication tools, including digital platforms or tenant support specialists. According to Kate Henderson<\/em><\/a>, Chief Executive of the National Housing Federation<\/em>, the reforms represent \u201can important milestone\u201d and have the potential to rebuild trust between landlords and residents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The government has also committed to extending Awaab\u2019s Law to the private rented sector through the Renters\u2019 Rights Bill<\/em><\/strong>, currently awaiting royal assent. Campaigners argue this step is vital, given that over 20% of private renters also report living with damp or mould.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Landlords across England are waking up to strict new rules that leave no room for delay. With legal action looming for inaction, the clock is now ticking on emergency repairs. The stakes? Housing safety, tenant rights, and millions in potential penalties.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":114553,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[44],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-114550","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-33","no-featured-image-padding"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/114550","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=114550"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/114550\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":114554,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/114550\/revisions\/114554"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/114553"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=114550"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=114550"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=114550"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}